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Keon Ball, age 45, of Baltimore, Maryland, pleaded guilty today to wire fraud conspiracy and aggravated identity theft in relation to multiple identity theft schemes and fraud schemes—including schemes conducted while on probation after a past state fraud conviction and while on pre-trial release in connection with state fraud charges. As part of his plea agreement, Ball will be ordered to pay at least $715,504 in restitution.

A federal criminal complaint has been filed charging Jerry Phillips, age 24, of Temple Hills, Maryland, for the federal charges of wire fraud and aggravated identity theft; and Jaleel Phillips, age 24, of Temple Hills, Maryland, for wire fraud, in relation to an alleged scheme to unlawfully obtain COVID-19 relief loans and unemployment benefits.

Christopher Kenneth Guy, age 30, of Tampa, Florida, pleaded guilty today to federal charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and mail fraud, and aggravated identity theft.

Today Maryland United States Attorney Erek L. Barron announced that the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland has entered into a memorandums of understanding (MOUs) with Special Inspector General Brian D. Miller of the Special Inspector General for Pandemic Recovery (SIGPR) and Deputy Inspector General James D. Powell of the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General (DOL-OIG), Office of Investigations, regarding the investigation and prosecution of fraud relating to The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act funding. The CARES Act was designed to...

This review was initiated by the Office of Legislative Audits, and it represents an expansion of an earlier limited review that was undertaken based on a joint request from the chairs of the Senate Education, Health, and Environmental Affairs and the House Health and Government Operations Committees for a review of two COVID-related emergency procurements. This current report includes the results of our review of the emergency procurement and accountability of medical supplies from Blue Flame Medical. In addition, during the course of our review, we identified 848 emergency procurements...

Oluwaseyi Akinyemi, a/k/a “Paddy Linkin”, a/k/a “Joseph Kadin”, age 35, of Hyattsville, Maryland, pleaded guilty today to two counts of mail fraud relating to a social media advanced fee fraud scheme that targeted elderly victims.

A federal grand jury has returned an indictment charging Nichelle Henson, age 35, of Baltimore, Maryland, for false statements and bank fraud in connection with fraudulent applications Henson allegedly filed to obtain Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) and Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans in the names of multiple businesses. The indictment was returned on December 7, 2021 and unsealed today. Henson will have her initial appearance virtually on Thursday, December 16, 2021, at 2:15 p.m., before U.S. Magistrate Judge A. David Copperthite.

At the time we initiated this review, the Montgomery County Council had appropriated almost $24 million through three separate resolutions to provide rental assistance to residents negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The appropriations funded the COVID-19 Rental Assistance Program, administered by the Housing Opportunities Commission of Montgomery County and the COVID-19 Rental Relief Program administered by the Department of Health and Human Services. We conducted this review to determine (1) if vulnerabilities exist in either program that create opportunities for fraud or abuse...

Odunayo “Baba” Oluwalade, age 25, of Windsor Mill, Maryland, pleaded guilty today to a federal wire fraud conspiracy in connection with a scheme purporting to sell COVID-19 vaccines.

A federal grand jury has returned an indictment charging three Maryland men on federal charges related to a scheme to fraudulently obtain more than $2.7 million in unemployment benefits.